Coolest blogs

So far, the coolest blogs I've seen are

-----the storys never told http://xixamxkenziex.blogspot.com/

"You know those books you accidentally come across? Those are my favorite. The book I'm reading right now is one of those. It's called I Like Him, He Likes Her and it's by Phyillis Reynolds Naylor. I absolutely love her writing. Its so real."

This blog looks really cool and the design is a real attention grabber.

-----lets get rich and give everybocy nice sweaters http://pagenotfounderror404.blogspot.com/

"I particularly enjoyed the part of the novel at which Morris compares the grooming habits of a chimpanzee to human socialization."

This blog also has a cool design, and I really think the name is good.  One thing though, dont put black font on a black background (currently reading).



Best written DPA response:

Just Because http://elizaveta-spot.blogspot.com/

I thought the opening of this paragraph was good and also the description of the suits in comparison to the school and the portrait from 100 years earlier.

"The inaugurated adolescent boys demonstrate fearful curiosity, surrounded by grey, dull, generic suits; we discovered the traditional wear is strangely close to that of a portrait painted one hundred years ago."

Faithful -- Part 2

As I continued to read the day by day recollection of the 2004 Red Sox season, it was the same thing every day.  The summary of the day's game, an inning by inning, important play by important play, and a quick look at what the Yankees did that day, and what the division looked like.  This book can get boring at times, but is definitely worth the read when a season changing game happened on July the 24th.

The Sox were playing the hated Yankees in a three game series just after the All-Star break.  Fuses will always be shorter between rivals as the games mean a lot more than just a regular game against any other team.  It started in the 6th inning, when Sox pitcher Bronson Arroyo plunked Yankee "pretty boy" Alex Rodriguez with a pitch.  Some trash-talking ensued and a pseudo-wrestling match took place between the Sox' catcher and A-Rod.

The benches ended up clearing and many players were ejected, but the fight meant more than the ejections.  Both players wanted to prove to their teams that they were the tougher man, and they were not going to let the rival player look tougher.  The benches clearing also means that teammates have each others backs and will always be there for them.  As an athlete,  I realize the influence pride has on the game and nobody wants to be the guy to get his face beat in.  But more than pride and fighting, is channeling the aggression and tension into hard work and effort, and that is what the Red Sox did for the rest of the season

Dead Poets Society

        In the opening scene of Peter Weir’s Dead Poets Society, the anxious formality and serious curiosity convey a nervous feeling turning a new chapter in life for the incoming students.  The prestigious meeting hall has an old-fashioned style that sets a strict tone in which the audience listens carefully.  The head master speaks loudly and clearly, and as he introduces the new English teacher a sense of uneasiness falls over the students as they do not know what to think of the new teacher.  Also, the head master explains what the school is all about and how prestigious it is.  The scene ends with the children and young adults saying their final goodbyes with a fearful, yet optimistic feeling, as they will be on their own for the term.  The sincere confidence of the parents when they let their children go shows the appreciation they have for the academy and dignity that comes with it.

      

First Reading Log

Since trading The Great Bambino in 1919 after winning the World Series, the Boston Red Sox had been so close to winning the Series, but the "Curse of the Bambino" had seemed to get in the way.  The opportunities have surely been there, as the final out of Game 6 to clinch the world series went between the first baseman's legs, and then losing the next game to lose the series, and losing in Game 7 on a walk off home run to lose the League Championship Series (LCS) in 2003.  It seemed  the curse would never be reversed.  It was however in the 2004 season, as the Red Sox came back from a 3-0 series lead against the hated Yankees to win the LCS 4 games to 3, facing elimination all 4 games.

The book Faithful chronicles the magical, yet historic 2004 season, and is written by Stewart O'Nan, and Stephen King, both die-hard Red Sox fans.  The die-hard tag applies to both of these guys in many ways.  First, they go to the ballpark hours before the game to shag home runs during batting practice, and watching every game, from first pitch to the final out.  This book is written in a diary format, as there is a post for every day the Sox play during the regular season.  These die-hard fans took a trip to Ft. Myers, Florida to take in a few scrimmage games as well as official spring training games.  Additionally, O'Nan looked for tickets to the Yankees vs. Red Sox diligently.  This was what I did for the IU vs. Kentucky basketball game.  It was a rivalry game where tickets were going for thousands of dollars. Being a die-hard fan is something I can relate to, and that is why I find this book interesting.

My Reading Autobiography

My life as a reader has been a little bit up and down.  I started pretty early like most kids and I was in an accelerated program by the 1st grade.  If I can remember correctly, I was at least into "chapter books" by the 1st grade and I would read a little bit at home, mainly the "Junie B. Jones" series and other books like that.  I do not remember much about later elementary school readings, besides one series called "Chasing the Falconers" which I read twice.  As I got into middle school I began to slack with my school reading and never read outside of class as I got more and more involved with sports and other activities.  That extended through 8th grade and I got into high school a little under-prepared.  There were sometimes during my freshman year when I did not open the book we were supposed to read once.  I have been getting better about it though and I hope that continues.


I still do not read much for pleasure, but I do enjoy autobiographies by the athletes I look up to the most, such as Tim Tebow and David Ortiz.  Those are the only kind of books I read for pleasure.  I feel like reading these books help me with my habits as an athlete and learning what it takes to make it big, and the hard work necessary for that.


I do not feel like reading has helped me much in my life besides what I said above.  That is probably because I don't read enough for it to have that big of an impact on me and my daily life.